University of Hawaii Nanotechnology Laboratory hosts Multifunctional Nanocomposites International Conference

HONOLULU — The University of Hawaiʻi Nanotechnology Laboratory, together with the Oceanit Company, has organized the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Nanotechnology Institute‘s Multifunctional Nanocomposites International Conference and NanoVenture Competition, to be held Sept. 20-22, 2006, at the East-West Center on the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa campus. The conference combines both scientific and business leaders in the field of nanotechnology, and will showcase presentations and discussions by globally recognized leaders in nanotechnology research, investment, entrepreneurship and commercialization. Sir Harold Kroto, who received the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1996, along with Richard Smalley and Robert Curl for their discovery of fullerenes, will be a plenary speaker at the conference.

The conference will address issues on emerging science and technology as related to Multifunctional and Hierarchical Nanocomposites in Nanotechnology. In recent years, research and development in these new areas have advanced rapidly with outcomes that have great scientific and technological values. The aim of the conference is to cover a broad range of issues as related to research and development in multifunctional nanocomposites such as Design and Modeling, Numerical and Computational Methods, Fabrication Methods, Manufacturing issues, Characterization, Multifunctionalities, Hierarchical and Bio-medical; by prominent researchers from all over the world.

In addition to Kroto, other prominent plenary and keynote speakers include: Professors Pulickel M. Ajayan of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Rodney S. Ruoff of Northwestern University; Morinobu Endo of Shinshu University (Japan); Shoushan Fan of Tsinghua University (China); Ben Wang of Florida State University; and Vijay K. Varadan of the University of Arkansas. Conference highlights also include a NanoVenture Competition for nanotechnology start-up companies and a speaker on business development, Dr. Robert J. Robinson of UH Mānoa.

The NanoVenture Business Plan Competition will provide networking opportunities to meet Asia-Pacific venture capitalists and angel investors who seek to fund the next promising startups in Nanotechnology. Finalists who have been selected for their innovation and promise will receive coaching from a team of experienced startup executives, as well as feedback and suggestions from a panel of industry judges.

"The conference contains a stellar program that highlights the latest and most exciting developments in the field of nanotechnology with a focus on applications," said Mehrdad N. Ghasemi Nejhad, conference general chair, professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UH Mānoa and director of the Hawaiʻi Nanotechnology Laboratory. "Business leaders and investors will provide an inside perspective on what it takes to be successful in building nanotechnology research and development. This conference will be a unique opportunity for all attendees, whether they are researchers, entrepreneurs, investors or at established businesses, to meet with the top talent of nanotechnology. This is the conference to meet all the leading research, innovative and business minds in nanotechnology."

"This is the best nanotechnology program of the year that integrates science and technology with business," added Ian Kitajima, conference co-chair and marketing manager of the Oceanit Company. "As evident from the content of this conference, the field of nanocomposites is an exciting area in the field of nanotechnology and has great potentials and promise in future commercial applications."

The ASME Nanotechnology Institute and the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)-Stanford-UC Berkeley Nanotechnology Forum International NanoConferences have previously been held at MIT, Stanford, and UC Berkeley for the past few years. The ASME Nanotechnology Institute International NanoConference was held last year in UC Berkeley, and will be held this year in Hawaiʻi with a concentration on Multifunctional Nanocomposites. The NanoConference rotates every year among various prominent nanotechnology program institutions.

Special Hawaiʻi Student Rate for the Conference On-Site Registration (excluding meals) is $20.

For further information on the speakers and program of the Multifunctional Nanocomposites International Conference, visit http://www.asmeconferences.org/MN06. The conference web page includes a message from Governor Linda Lingle and Lt. Governor R. "Duke" Aiona, Jr.